I am a student on a short term Schengen visa in Belgium. Recently, my passport was stolen after which I got a new passport issued by the Indian embassy. This obviously does not have a Schengen visa (that was on the stolen passport). I have copies of all the stolen documents and the police report. With these, is it okay to travel within the Schengen countries? The visa expiry is still another month away, though I don't know if it is now rendered invalid for travel. Any suggestions?
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1Formally, if it's OK to stay in Belgium then it should be OK to travel in the Schengen area as well. Unless you got another visa in the meantime, I don't see how you would have the right to stay there but not to move. What you should do in practice, I don't know. Travel within the Schengen area might be OK, getting out of the Schengen area and trying to get back would seem much more risky.– RelaxedNov 7, 2013 at 13:03
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2Did you contact the foreign department in the place you live, or diplomatie.belgium.be/en/Contact and ask on how to proceed?– user141Nov 7, 2013 at 15:09
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1 Answer
My understanding is that, since you have entered Schengen legally with a valid visa, you may continue to stay in Schengen; and because there are no border controls within Schengen, you may also continue to travel within Schengen. You will definitely want to carry your passport, visa and police report copies though, just in case you're stopped by police etc. And you'll probably want to double-check this advice with eg. the embassy of the country you plan to visit, since I'm having a hard time finding a definitive source for this.
You'll definitely be able to leave Schengen normally, since your visa details for the old passport will be on file, although you should allow some extra time at the airport for checking. However, after you leave, you will not be able to come back unless you get your visa reissued, and you will apparently be charged the full new visa fee for this. Since you only have a month left and apparently have no plans to travel outside Schengen, this is most likely not worth it.
answered Nov 7, 2013 at 22:20
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1Thanks for all the comments/replies. I contacted the local commune hall, and they said I cannot leave Belgium, but also that there would be no problem when I fly back to India. I found that a little weird, since it implies that no tourist can continue travelling if his/her passport is stolen. And thanks for the suggestion - I am planning to check with embassies of other countries before travelling. I'll update when I have more information.– user9060Nov 12, 2013 at 19:30
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4Thanks for the follow-up! I would suggest you double-check with actual immigration authorities, I'm not sure the local town hall will be up to speed with the obscure details of Schengen visa regulations. Nov 13, 2013 at 0:02